Namco Bandai

Writing here at GameCritics, we often strive to dig a little deeper in our review coverage. Settling for a description of "fun" isn't generally an option, given that it's a common crutch of the games media in general, and far too vague a word to do justice to the games or our readers. However, once in a while a game comes along that cries out for liberal use of the "F" word.

Game Description: Scooter must hurry to save his planet! Power supplies are running out and to save them he must win the coveted "Super Ribbinite". Compete to become the Frolf Champion across 20 different courses on 5 different worlds. You must defeat all your opponents to win the Frolf Cup and the Super Ribbinite. Planet Hippitron is counting on you!

There's a reciprocation that comes from certain games. They give back the love that is given or better yet, they might multiply that love—those rare games that aren't played so much as they seduce the player. Games that make it easy to love them, or even games that offer up an initial bit of resistance before opening up and allowing the persistent gamer access to their hidden treasures.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Intense Violence, Strong Language, Blood and Gore

Game Description: A 3D action/adventure in which you fight with Spawn's superhuman strength, combat techniques, weaponry, Hell Powers and, of course, living costume, Spawn: Armageddon based on Todd McFarlane's creation, is a 3D action or adventure that will give players access to all of his distinctive abilities his superhuman strength, hand-to-hand combat techniques, his arsenal of weaponry, his Hell Powers and, of course, his living symbiotic costume. Caught between the battle of Good vs. Evil, he struggles to break free from the controlling influences of Heaven and Hell, Spawn: Armageddon is set in the gritty streets and alleyways of New York City. The focus of the game is combat, where Spawn can use three different methods of attack: hell powers, weapons, and hand-to-hand maneuvers.

Game Description: Breakdown is the story of a young man freed from a mysterious organization looking to brainwash him into submission. You can not only smash soldiers, government agents, and supernatural enemies using your fists, but call upon a special energy that imbues your arms with powerful concentrations of light., Trapped inside a mysterious laboratory and unable to remember his past, Derrick Cole discovers his extraordinary powers as he fights for survival against a determined military faction and a legion of seemingly invincible super-human warriors.

Breakdown is a perfect example of the sort of great-thinking, rotten-playing game that has a great brain, but neglects the basics backing it up. It has a great hook, especially when you consider that most respected developers today say the elusive feelings of emotional involvement and immersion are what they're after. Breakdown certainly scores major points on that front, but taken as a whole, the project achieves disappointingly uneven results.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence

The optimist in me looks forward to the day when "drumming game" can be seen not as a novelty, but as an accepted subgenre. Wishful thinking, I know.